Misfits and Peculiar People

3 Feb

We’ve become comfortable with who we are.  We speak in our special code language, read books which most people find confounding and confusing, and interact with others as though we are trying very hard not to get our new clothes dirty.

The problem is that we’ve forgotten who we were.  We were once the misfits, the broken, the peculiar…the lost.  And even though we now are very different, at our very core, at our very essence, we are still all of those things…

 

Once lost. Now found.

Once broken. Now whole.

Once cursed. Now forgiven.

Once enslaved. Now free.

Simply Put…

Jesus made it His very life mission to gather the misfits, the lost, the broken; to Him.  We should cherish who we have become through Him. However, we must not forget who we were.  Rather, let us always remember that the only thing separating the “who we were” from the “who we are” is one tiny word…

Grace…

Press In…

Tags: , , , , , ,

Love in 3D…

28 Jan

Consider this…

In the gospel of Matthew, chapter 22 verses 35-40, we read where, when questioned, Jesus tells a young lawyer that the two most important commandments are to love God and love each other.  In fact, He says that we are to love God with all of our heart, soul, and mind.  Therein lays the problem…

We are sorely pressed to love in 3D.

When it comes to God and all things spiritual, most of us fall short of the capacity to love fully as God intends.  Some understand the Great Commandment intellectually (mind) but, their heart is cold due to past hurts.  Others may be passionate (heart), but lack discernment and are passionate about the wrong things.  Then there are others that never allow their innermost self (soul), to connect with the Holy Spirit that dwells in every believer, and go through life scratching the surface of what could be an intimate love affair with God.

Simply Put…

Technology is amazing.  Today there are more 3D movies than ever.  Televisions are 3D capable.  If we desire to draw closer to God…if we desire to live a life that is continually achieving the commandment(s) that are most important to Christ; then we must constantly sit at the Master’s feet and ask Him to switch on our own 3D feature, in our hearts, in our minds, and in our souls…God never intended for us to live in 2D….

Press In…

Tags: , ,

God? Have you forgot about me?

27 Jan

This seems to be a question that is asked far too often.

We mess up.

We walk away.

We fail.

We get to a point where we feel so far away from God that we believe that there is no way He could ever accept us much less love us.

Until, finally we cry out in despair…

God? Have you forgot about me?

Simply Put…

No, no He has not.

The bible teaches us that we are “the apple of His eye” and that God will be with us always.  He loves us far more than we can ever imagine. Even when we mess up, walk away, or fail.  And when we cry out in despair, He runs to us, like the loving Father that He is.  The only thing He forgets is our past…

Embrace this…

Press In…

Tags: , ,

From Now to Next

26 Jan

I love being around people that have God visions. People who are not afraid to chase the things that God has put before them with total abandon! Unfortunately, there are times when we can lose sight of God’s plan because life gets in the way. Here are a couple of things that can help you stay the course until God’s vision in you comes to fruition…

PLAN BACKWARD FROM NEXT:  I find this to be very helpful.  I find that when I write down the vision and plan backward, I am able to see in better detail what may need to occur in order to see the vision come alive.  I catch more roadblocks and obstacles. When you can do away with things that can make the vision stall, you feed into forward momentum!

TREAT NOW WITH URGENCY: It is easy to caught up in constantly thinking about a dream or vision.  However, there are things that must be accomplished first before we ever begin working toward that vision.  This doesn’t mean we should have a “I gotta hurry and get THIS done” attitude that may lend itself to doing something that is not excellent…I mean doing what God has you doing right now with excellence until it is done or until He tells you to do something else.  I believe that God honors us when we do those things that are before us and then He allows us to do those kingdom things He has birthed in us.

ROLL UP YOUR SLEEVES:  We talk a lot about waiting on God. And we should. But, that doesn’t mean that we sit on our hands and daydream about the future.  God has stuff for us to do RIGHT NOW!  And while I am confident that He could simply make whatever vision He gives us come about with a word…there is something in our willingness to work that compels God to bless all of our endeavors…now and next!

Simply Put…

Having a God vision and desiring to see it come alive is a good thing.  But, we can never forsake what God has us doing right here, right now. After all, it is what He is doing with us right here, right now that is shaping us to accomplish the “next”.  Noah, Moses, David, Jesus…they all had “right now” stuff that made them good examples for all to follow.  It was their “right now” work ethic that got them to the “next” thing that God had for them…which makes them GREAT examples.

So write that vision down, from Next to Now…get busy doing whatever is before you, and work!  Work and chase God’s vision with abandon…and see how God moves you to where He wants you to be…

Press In…

Tags: ,

You ain’t a shrink!

24 Jan

They are all around us…we all have them…friends, acquaintances, even family members that have lives that are messed up. It seems as though they go from one dilemma to the next; living lives filled with drama.

We, being the good people that we are try to help them. We sit them down and do our best Drs. Phil, Drew, or Oz impersonations…we say things like, “What you should do” and “You shouldn’t have done that”. We talk and talk to them, giving our advice and our opinions…and then we leave them to their own devices. Sure enough, they mess up again and we “tsk, tsk” and begin the “I told you so” carousel anew. We err greatly…

Often, we are so busy trying to put our best foot forward and tell others how they should do what we say, that we forget to give them an example they can see…our lives. We become so caught up in giving advise and dispensing our opinions that we lose sight of the fact that our faith is built upon a Man, Jesus, that collects the misfits of society to Him. He cares for us, He loves us…and He shows us how to overcome the messed up junk in our lives by showing us, through the bible, how He lived His life.

Simply Put…

We are who we are and none of us has it together. We all mess up, we all hurt, we all mess up. So the next time someone comes to you for advice, tell them how messed up you are, then tell them about the One that loves us no matter how messed up we are…then show them that love by simply following Christ’s example.

Press In…

It’s Friday…so what!

20 Jan

The end of the week is typically when we begin to hear things like, “Thank God it’s Friday!”, and “I am so glad it’s the weekend!”.  All week long we have been in the “rat race”, rushing here and there to get so many things accomplished. Pick up kids, finish projects, work deadlines, meetings, ball games…And in addition to all of the craziness that most of us call “life” we have to somehow navigate and interact with other people that are just as stressed as we are and hope, just hope, that we won’t hurt or be hurt amid all of the hustle and bustle.  By the end of the week we are beat up emotionally, sometimes physically, and certainly spiritually.  We’re bruised, we’re battered, we’re broken…we hurt. So much so that we can wonder, “Does God even care for me at all?”

Simply Put…

Yes, yes He does…“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” (John 3:16 NASB)

He loves you when you are beat up, bruised, battered, broken and hurting.  He loves you and desires to help you through all of the craziness life offers. He loves you and won’t stop…no matter what day it is.

Remember that…

Press In…

Pay attention…

14 Jan

I was driving in some unusually heavy traffic the other day when I noticed a woman trying to exit a gas station.  The light was red, so I stopped short and motioned for her to pull ahead of me.  However, while she was looking my way, she wasn’t looking at me…she was on the cell…distracted.  I motioned several more times but to no avail.  Finally, the light turned green and I honked my horn, waited and went ahead. As I passed her we locked eyes for the first time. She realized that she missed an opportunity and would have to wait for a long line of cars to clear before she would have another chance to move…. Got me thinking…that’s kinda how we are with God at times, isn’t it?

Simply put…

God wants us to move with Him.  He beckons us to move out into traffic and go forward. But often we are too distracted to notice that He has stopped everything around us so that we can merge with Him…and we miss an opportunity to do kingdom stuff.

If we truly desire to serve God in the way He created us to, then we must put down everything that is a distraction and stay focused on Him. Otherwise we will be stuck in traffic, going nowhere…

Press In…

← Older Entries